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Shoreline spruce-up coming soon

Wed, 09/04/2019 - 9:13amadmin

Daniel Island's waterfront improvements to start this fall

By:

Elizabeth Bush

The largest grant in Daniel Island Community Fund history is paving the way for a host of improvements to the island’s waterfront along the Wando River. And those changes will be coming soon, according to Jane Baker, vice president of community services for the Daniel Island Property Owners Association. The project is part of a $1 million grant that also funded recent enhancements to Guggenheim Park, which opened earlier this year.

“We are thrilled to be at just about 100 percent completion with the Guggenheim renovations, which the community seems to be enjoying,” stated Baker. “That project was paid out of that grant and we have been working diligently in permitting our plan for Waterfront Park over the last two years. We are at the one-yard line with our permit application at the DHEC’s OCRM (Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management).”

The dock permit application, explained Baker, is really an amended existing marina permit that the Daniel Island Company obtained years ago “when a marina was contemplated” for the location.

“But for various reasons, (that project) was unable to come to fruition,” she added. “So we just modified that existing permit to be able to accomplish what we want to accomplish with the funding that we have for the waterfront.”

Lining the shoreline near the end of River Landing Drive as part of both land side and waterfront renovations will be engaging new play elements for children, a community table, creative seating, new landscaping, swings, moon lighting, a hammock garden and a brand new dock complete with space for a sailing program and kayak/paddle boards.

“What happens on this dock is everything is open to the public,” said Baker. “We anticipate a sailing program being out of this dock, kayak and paddle board rental program, fishing. This is also where the Daniel Island Ferry will embark and debark from. With the exception of the ferry, we anticipate this as being for non-motorized boat use.”

Baker is hopeful the Daniel Island Town Association will receive the dock permit approval within the next few weeks so construction can get started.

“We anticipate the dock improvement starting in the fall of 2019 and hope to finish in early spring,” she added.

The Daniel Island Ferry has announced it will begin a commuter service to and from Daniel Island to Charleston sometime this fall, pending the arrival of a new boat to its fleet.

“We are committed to the Daniel Island Ferry being a part of this waterfront experience for residents and visitors,” said Baker. “We think that it’s a wonderful way to highlight not only the beautiful waterfront of Daniel Island, but a smart way to move around a very vehicular-oriented Charleston.”

The land side renovations along the shoreline will begin in 2020 with completion next summer.

“Our engineers and contractors say starting on the water is a smart thing to do, so that’s what we’re doing,” added Baker. “It’s an orchestrated, major project.”

The enhancements come at a time when the area near Children’s Park is undergoing a significant overhaul, as East West Partners begins construction on a new townhome community, known as The Waterfront, complete with retail spaces and a new waterfront restaurant. That project is already underway, as many passersby have likely noticed clearing of the 22-acre site to make way for the first buildings in the new community. Phase one, to include 58 residences, is expected to be complete by 2021.

Both the waterfront improvements and the East West Partners development are expected to provide a more engaging experience for residents and visitors along the shoreline. And Baker noted that additional enhancements are in the works and will be announced soon.

“The Daniel Island Town Association is in negotiations with other partners for even more improvements to the area,” she said. “More to come on that in the future. We are finalizing agreements and finalizing funding with third party partners.”